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Wes Johnson defends unsuccessful double steal early in elimination game vs. Oklahoma State

On3 imageby: Dan Morrison06/01/25dan_morrison96
Wes Johnson Georgia
(Kari Hodges/UGAAA)

The Georgia Bulldogs and head coach Wes Johnson came into Sunday facing elimination from the NCAA Tournament. Facing off against Oklahoma State and already trailing 1-0 in the top of the second, he tried to force the issue with a double steal that failed.

In the top of the third, Johnson spoke to the ESPN2 broadcast. There, he explained his thought process behind the unsuccessful double steal attempt.

“When you’ve got a guy like this that you’re going against on the mound,” Wes Johnson said. “He really, traditionally, doesn’t walk guys. He’s tough to hit. You’re just trying to jump-start something. He was left on left right there and yeah… But, you’re just trying to jump-start something against a really good pitcher.”

On the failed double steal, Georgia had runners on the corners. The runner on first took off for second but purposefully tripped, trying to draw a throw. At the same time, the runner on third took off for home, but Oklahoma State wasn’t tricked and it was an easy tag out to end the inning. It wasn’t Johnson’s only attempt to spark the Bulldogs, either. Earlier, they’d tried a hit-and-run.

Oklahoma State started left-hander Harrison Bodendorf. That is likely part of Wes Johnson’s thought process. Georgia has struggled at times against lefties this season. So, runs could be hard to come by.

Johnson also explained where some of those issues have come from to the broadcast. Fixing it comes from a lot of places, but that includes confidence.

“When you hit home runs, and you guys know this, you’re going to have more of a pull to pull-side gap approach. Sometimes that can get you in trouble against certain left-handers. It’s just so happened that some guys have gotten us with that,” Johnson said. “But that’s our game. You’re just trying to get a little confidence with them because we can do it. So, it worked out good. The guys liked it. We actually swung the bats good against a lefty the next night out, and we need to get that going right now.”

Shortly after Wes Johnson got off the broadcast with ESPN, Slate Alford of Georgia hit a two-run home run off the lefty pitcher. That cut Oklahoma State’s lead to 3-2 at the time and helped spark the crowd in Athens. Alford’s celebration, on top of that, sparked warnings to avoid too much showboating moving forward in this elimination game. By the time the top of the third inning was over, it would be 5-3 with Georgia leading.